AI in Their Pockets, Values on the Line: A Catholic School and Its Partner Step Up

Academia María Reina (AMR), a Catholic girls' school in Puerto Rico, knew its students were already using AI on their phones long before adults had a plan for it. Teachers worried about cheating and the loss of "real" thinking. Students treated AI as a shortcut, something "there to do everything for you," as technology facilitator Anyelisa Mejías observed.

AMR decided that inaction carried greater risk. Molix Nieves, AMR's Educational Technology Coordinator and math teacher, framed it as a moral obligation:  "It's our responsibility to do something."

Instead of waiting, AMR invited Forward Learning, a regional professional development and learning environment provider serving schools across Puerto Rico, to face AI head-on. They pursued two Middle States Association (MSA) Responsible AI in Learning (RAIL) endorsements as partners.